Pirates, Lady Apaches golf win in DardanelleDARDANELLE — The Pottsville Lady Apaches golf team won match Thursday at the Lion's Den Golf Club in Dardanelle against Dover, Dardanelle, Atkins and Lamar. Julianna Harper of Dardanelle was the overall winner with a score of 39, but Pottsville totaled for 152 to win the tournament. Dover placed second with a team score of 157. Other team leaders for the Lady Apaches were Cheyenne Carillo with 46, Krissy Davis with 49 and Britney Heflin with 5...

Dream Team prepares for upcoming seasonPOTTSVILLE — Despite promising his grandmother that he never would, David “Diamond Dream” Beck finally shaved off his traditional mohawk prior to Dream Team Boxing’s ninth season of amateur USA Boxing sanctioned competition. He didn’t want the way he looks to be a distraction for those who might be interested in his program. “I think the mohawk held the kids back,” he said. “Because a lot of people judge based on what they see rather than what...

Two Sarahs better than oneWhen Chris Cloud informed me that he had secured the winning bid for the kids fishing trip with me from our annual RussVegas coaches fundraiser, I instantly knew that whatever trip we went on was going to be a fun one. Once he and daughter Sarah Cloud asked me if Sarah Posey could tag along with us, I knew the entertainment level was definitely going up. You see both of these fine young ladies played basketball for me this past season and even...

Local Scouts win national White River canoe raceThe Russellville Venture Crew 300, a co-ed division of the Boy Scouts of America, recently won the 2014 White River Canoe Race. The three-day, 120-mile race is the Boy Scouts of America national championship and has taken place annually for the last 48 years. “It’s a pretty big event in scouting,” boys team coach Steve Lynn said. “We’ve been trying to win that race for the last four years, but the team from Bogalusa, Lousiana has been the pere...

Sand Lizards to host peewee football campDARDANELLE — Sand Lizards head coach Josh Price wants to get kids interested in the Dardanelle football program at an early age. Not only will the Dardanelle peewee football camp be a chance for Price to attract new players, it’ll be a chance for both coaches and players to put names with faces. “It kind of builds a little common ground between us and the younger kids,” Price said. “We don’t necessarily scout them, but we can match a name with...

Plenty of activities at Lake DardanelleThere’s plenty to do at Lake Dardanelle State Park over the summer — especially for children. From the Arkansas State Park Explorer program, to day camps, boat rides and activities held throughout the week, kids in the Arkansas River Valley should have little excuse to cry “I’m bored” as the summer stretches on. Lake Dardanelle State Park superintendent Sarah Keating said the programs, many of which are completely free, are important because t...

Sharks host meet at M.J. Hickey ParkThe Russellville Sharks hosted the Alma Gators, Clarksville Sea Dragons and Paris Sting Rays and M.J. Hickey Park on Friday for one of four summer swim meets conducted by the Arkansas River Valley Swim League (ARVSL). The Sharks have 130 registered swimmers making them one of the largest sports teams in Russellville. What’s the draw? Steve Newby, whose kids have participated in the Sharks program for the last eight years, said there was no bet...

RYBA all set to host 9AA state tourneyThe Russellville Youth Baseball Association (RYBA) will host United State Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) 9AA state tournament at M.J. Hickey Park to determine the top 9-year-old little league team in the state. Twenty-three teams from all across the state will make the trip for the tournament, which begins at 1 p.m. today and lasts through Sunday. “It’ll be going hot-and-heavy all day today,” RYBA president Chad Bartlett said. “First gam...

Top taekwondo meet, LR's biggest draw, is set LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The American Taekwondo Association is expected to draw 20,000 people to Little Rock for its annual international competition and training event. The conference runs July 7-13 at the Statehouse Convention Center. Three days of competitions are set to start July 11 and are open to the public. Three-day passes will be sold for $10. Participants will be able to attend martial arts seminars, special training sessions, tournament ...

Local teams gear up for summer workoutsTimes have changed. In the past, when the final bell signaled the end of school for the summer, coaches didn’t usually see their players again until early August, where they began grueling two-a-day workouts in order to catch up and prepare for the upcoming fall schedule. These days, football is played 365 days a year. “If you don’t,” Pottsville head coach Bryan Rust said. “You’re falling behind.” From spring practices, 7-on-7 tournaments to t...

Dardanelle welcomes two new softball fieldsDARDANELLE — The city of Dardanelle christened a new softball complex at Merritt Park during a ceremony and four games Tuesday across two new fields at the facility. The complex, which Dardanelle constructed through a $250,000 matching grant with the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, saw its first pitch after an invocation by Dardanelle Sports Commission member Jared Higginbotham. “Everything we do through this facility will bring hono...

Jones voted softball coach of the yearPOTTSVILLE — The Pottsville Lady Apaches softball team was young. Eight seniors graduated in 2013 and left Lady Apaches head coach Greg Jones with a lot holes to fill. Many didn’t expect much from Pottsville this year — certainly not a share of the 4A-4 Conference championship, a third-place finish in the district and regional tournaments, and definitely not a berth in the Class 4A state tournament. “A lot of people picked us to finish in the ...

Local sports briefs (May 27, 2014)Sand Lizards football scrimmage today DARDANELLE — The Dardanelle Sand Lizards spring football scrimmage will kick off at 6 p.m. today at Keenan Field. Cost of admission is a donation to the Dardanelle Football Booster Club. ATU Night with the Travelers on June 6 Arkansas Tech University alumni and friends will gather at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock on Friday, June 6, for the eighth annual Arkansas Tech Night with the Arkansas Tra...

M.J. Hickey Pool openingM.J. Hickey Pool will be opening on the weekends and the Memorial Day holiday starting Saturday, May 24. The pool will begin opening daily on June 5 when the school year is completed. Daily admission for adults (18 or older) - $4, children (7 - 17) - $3, children (6 and under) - $2. Individual season passes priced at $75 are available at the Hughes Center at 1000 E. Parkway Drive. Pool hours are 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. every day.

RHS’s Barker signs with Seminole StateRussellville Cyclones pitcher Jacob Barker signed a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) scholarship to play baseball for the Seminole State (Okla.) Trojans before family and friends inside Russellville High School (RHS) cafeteria on Tuesday. Barker said he chose the Oklahoma college because he was impressed with the team’s discipline during a recent visit to the campus. “We took a trip up there and I liked their professionalis...

Locals compete at Pottsville boutsPOTTSVILLE — Dream Team Boxing head coach David “Diamond Dream” Beck put two fighters in the ring during Pugilism in Pottsville 8 held Saturday inside Pottsville Middle School Gymnasium. While neither came away with a victory in the USA Boxing sanctioned bout, Beck said he was proud of the heart they displayed. “We showed a lot of heart, I think,” Beck said. “When it comes down between skill or heart, I’ll take heart any day. You can’t teach h...

Local trapshooting team hits targetGunshots rang out on South Arkansas Avenue, just before the old “Truckloads of Odds and Ends” building, headed toward Dardanelle. “Pull,” someone said, and a clay pigeon was sent sailing through the air. Moments later its debris crumbled in the sky and peppered the open field that stretches before the Russellville Trap Team and their shotguns. Trap shooting is one of the three major disciplines of competitive clay pigeon shooting, wherein part...

Duggers make right decision at Grand LakeOAK GROVE, Okla. — Pottsville’s Jake and Josh Dugger of the River Valley Bass Club won the Grand Lake Open on Saturday to earn an qualifying spot in the TBF/FLW Southern Conference Regional Championship in October. The Duggers won the tournament after some hesitation on whether they would fish at all — the pair were torn with a decision to either play in a local basketball tournament or fish in TBF/FLW Grand Lake Open on Saturday. The Duggers ...

RHS hits 3 homers during Vilonia winThe Russellville Cyclones used three home runs to defeat the Vilonia Eagles 7-1 in a nonconference match-up at M.J. Hickey Park on Monday. Russellville’s first home run came in the bottom of the first when senior Cody Underhill hit a hard fly ball over the fence to give the Cyclones an early lead. Andy Campbell and Jacob Barker each popped fly balls over the fence in the fifth to give the Cyclones a 4-1 lead. Russellville added two more in the...